Alternative metal (also known asalt-metal)[4] is a genre ofheavy metal music that combines heavy metal with influences fromalternative rock and other genres not normally associated with metal.[5][6] Alternative metal bands are often characterized by heavilydowntuned, mid-paced guitarriffs, a mixture of accessible melodic vocals andharsh vocals and sometimes sounds that are unconventional within other heavy metal styles.[5] The term has been in use since the 1980s,[7] although it came into prominence in the 1990s.[8]
Other genres considered part of the alternative metal movement includedrap metal[5][9] andfunk metal, both of which influenced another prominent subgenre,nu metal. Nu metal expands the alternative metal sound, combining its vocal stylings and downtuned riffs with elements of other genres, such aship hop,funk,thrash metal,hardcore punk andindustrial metal.
Tool (pictured) is one of the most influential alternative metal bands.
The genre is generally considered a fusion betweenalternative rock andheavy metal,[6] althoughAllMusic states "alt-metal is a far-reaching term that has been used to describe everyone from Hammerlock toNeurosis toMinistry toLimp Bizkit".[10] They also remarked that alternative metal was originally "a style united by its nonconformist sensibility rather than any immediately classifiable sound."[5]
One of the main characteristics of alternative metal and its subgenres are heavily downtuned, mid-paced "chug"-like guitar riffs.[11][12][13] However,funk metal bands often use a more conventional riffing style influenced by 1980s thrash metal.[14] Alternative metal features clean and melodic vocals,[4] influenced by those of alternative rock, in contrast to other heavy metal subgenres. Later bands frequently incorporated vocal styles that alternated between clean singing,growls andscreaming.[6][15][16][17] Examples include alternative metal bands associated with the nu metal movement, such asKorn andDeftones, who have been described as having "bipolar vocals".[18][19]
Jonathan Gold of theLos Angeles Times wrote in 1990 "Just as rock has an alternative, [left] wing-bands likethe Replacements andDinosaur Jr.-so does metal. Alternative metal is alternative music that rocks. And alternative metal these days can reach 10 times the audience of other alternative rock.Jane's Addiction plays an intense brand of '70s-influenced arty metal; so doesSoundgarden. In fact, the arty meanderings ofSabbath andZeppelin themselves would be considered alternative metal."[20]Houston Press has described the genre as being a "compromise for people for whomNirvana was not heavy enough butMetallica was too heavy."[21]
The origins of the genre can be traced back tofunk rock music of the early to mid-1980s, whenalternative bands likeFishbone,Faith No More and theRed Hot Chili Peppers started mixingheavy metal withfunk, creating the alternative metal subgenrefunk metal.[33] Other early bands in the genre also came fromhardcore punk backgrounds.[34] Bands such as Faith No More,Jane's Addiction andSoundgarden are recognized as some of the earliest alternative metal acts, with all three of these bands emerging around the same time, and setting the template for the genre by mixing heavy metal music with a variety of different genres in the mid to late 1980s.[5][35][36][37][38] During the 1980s, alternative metal appealed mainly toalternative rock fans, since virtually all 1980s alt-metal bands had their roots in the Americanindependent rock scene.[5]Living Colour was another alternative metal band that combined the genre with funk metal.[5]
Expansion and mainstream popularity (early–mid 1990s)
The emergence ofgrunge as a popular style ofrock music in the early 1990s helped make alternative metal more acceptable to a mainstream audience, with alternative metal soon becoming the most popularmetal style of the 1990s.[5] Several bands associated with the genre denied their status as metal bands.[39][40]Helmet drummerJohn Stanier said "We fell into the whole metal thing by accident, we always hated it when people mentioned metal in conjunction with us."[40] Helmet'sMeantime (1992) album became one of the most influential heavy metal albums of the 1990s.[41] Saby Reyes-Kulkarni ofPitchfork Media stated "bands like Faith No More, Soundgarden,Primus, Helmet, theRollins Band, and dozens more were initially marketed as quasi-metal acts. This was only possible in a climate where record labels, journalists, and college radio DJs understood that the metal audience could embrace new, albeit arty variations on the form."[42] The alternative music festivalLollapalooza conceived by Jane's Addiction singerPerry Farrell, helped bands associated with the movement such asTool,Rage Against the Machine,Primus,Nine Inch Nails,Soundgarden, andAlice in Chains gain exposure.[5] Theprogressive rock-influenced band Tool became a leading band in the alternative metal genre with the release of their 1993 debut albumUndertow; Tool's popularity in the mid-'90s helped kick off an era of bands with alt-metal tendencies also classified in other genres likeindustrial (Nine Inch Nails) andrap rock (Rage Against the Machine).[4]Spin stated in August 1998 that "It was Helmet that spawned the idea of alternative metal with thepunk crutch of 1992'sMeantime [and] bands such as Rage Against the Machine took the concept a crucial step further, integratinghip hop to connect with skate rat kids raised onMetallica andRun D.M.C."[43] Many established 1980s metal bands released albums in the 1990s that were described as alternative metal, includingAnthrax,[44]Metallica[45][46] andMötley Crüe.[47] Bands likeLife of Agony combined alternative metal withhardcore punk influences.[5] Life of Agony's debut albumRiver Runs Red combined alternative metal with influences of hardcore punk, with lyrics about depression and suicide.[48]
Emergence of nu metal and commercial peak (late 1990s – early 2000s)
In the latter part of the 1990s, a second, more aggressive wave of alternative metal emerged; dubbednu metal, it often relied onhardcore punk,[5]groove/thrash metal,[5][49]industrial[5] andhip hop[5] influences, as opposed to the influences of the first wave of alternative metal bands, with this style subsequently becoming more popular than regular alternative metal.[4][5][22] It resulted in a more standardized sound among alternative metal bands, in contrast to the more eccentric and unclassifiable early alternative metal bands.[5]Korn, a band formed in 1993, released theirself-titled debut the following year, which is widely considered to be the first nu metal release.[50]MTV stated that Korn "arrived in 1993 into the burgeoning alternative metal scene, which would morph into nü-metal the waycollege rock became alternative rock."[51]Stereogum similarly claimed that nu metal was a "weird outgrowth of the Lollapalooza-era alt-metal scene".[52] During the late 1990s and early 2000s, nu metal was prevalent in the mainstream, with bands such asKorn,Limp Bizkit,Linkin Park,Slipknot andStaind all attaining success. AllMusic has compared nu and alternative metal's commercial success during this period to the rise of theglam metal phenomenon in the 1980s, stating that it is "ironic, given alternative metal's vehement rejection of hair metal's attitude."[5] Some nu metal bands managed to push musical boundaries while still remaining commercially viable, such asMudvayne (who combinedprogressive[53] elements) andDeftones, who have incorporatedpost-hardcore anddream pop influences.[54][55]
Joel McIver believes that the band Tool is important to the development of this genre; he wrote in his bookUnleashed: The Story of Tool, "By 1996 and '97 the wave of alternative metal spearheaded by Tool in the wake of grunge was beginning to evolve into nu-metal". However, Tool's vocalistMaynard James Keenan was quick to separate himself from this movement saying "I'm sick of that whole attitude. The one that puts Tool in with [nu] metal bands. The press... can't seem to distinguish between alternative and metal."[39] Other alternative metal bands considered influential to the nu metal genre such as Helmet have also tried to distance themselves from the movement.[59][60]
Decline in nu metal and continuity in popularity of alternative metal (2003–2009)
In 2004, nu metal's popularity was declining, with bands like Korn, Limp Bizkit and P.O.D. having a decline in album sales. Instead,post-grunge bands likeNickelback were selling the most records and being promoted the most on radio.[61] Additionally, many nu metal bands began to move away from the nu metal genre and moved on to other genres.[54]
In 2016, Jason Heller ofVice wrote "The term alternative metal still pops up from time to time, but it’s no more relevant or meaningful today than alternative rock. Instead, it’s a relic. But the brief, nebulous era of alternative metal in the late 80s and early 90s remains a snapshot of a vibrant time when a brash new generation of heavy-leaning bands threw everything against the wall to see what stuck."[62]
^Schmidt, Axel; Neumann-Braun, Klaus (2008) [First published 2004].Die Welt der Gothics: Spielräume düster konnotierter Transzendenz [The World of the Gothics: Leeways of Darkly Connoted Transcendency] (in German) (2nd ed.). Wiesbaden: VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften / GWV Fachverlage GmbH. pp. 269–270.ISBN978-3-531-15880-8. RetrievedDecember 29, 2009.
^"Rap-Metal".Allmusic. RetrievedNovember 21, 2012.Rap-Metal seeks to fuse the most aggressive elements of hardcore rap and heavy metal, and became an extremely popular variation of alternative metal during the late '90s...In spite of projects like 1993's much-hyped Judgment Night soundtrack -- which featured all-star teamings of artists from the rap and rock worlds -- crossover collaborations faded as the '90s wore on. At the same time, rap-metal began to draw influences from alternative metal -- specifically, bands like Helmet, White Zombie, and Tool, who relied on crushingly heavy sonic textures more than catchy songwriting or immediately memorable riffs. The thick sound and the lack of melodic emphasis fit rap-metal's concerns perfectly. With the exception of Rage Against the Machine's angry left-wing politics, most rap-metal bands during the mid- to late '90s blended an ultra-aggressive, testosterone-heavy theatricality with either juvenile humor or an introspective angst learned through alternative metal...
^Prato, Greg (September 16, 2014).Primus, Over the Electric Grapevine: Insight into Primus and the World of Les Claypool. Akashic Books.ISBN978-1-61775-322-0.
^abChriste, Ian (2003). Sound of the Beast: The Complete Headbanging History of Heavy Metal. HarperCollins. Chapter 13: Transforming the 1990s: The Black Album & Beyond.
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